What's the lowest level of steel you'll tolerate when buying a knife?

440A or AUS6 (same thing, basically). I honestly feel that too much emphasis is put on 'superior' edge holding ability. Don't get me wrong; a knife that holds it's edge well is great, but I'd rather have 'decent' edge holding with more toughness and ease of sharpening (that is if you have taking the time to oversome 'sharpening-phobia' and tought yourself to sharpen properly). My favorite stainless is still VG10, though. The most well-rounded stainless steel out there, in my opinion. In carbon steels, I personally feel it all comes down to the heat treat.
 
I know I am going to sound like a snob, but at this point, I only buy knives with "premium" materials. And that includes blade steel.

So S30V, D2, VG10, BG42, A2, 3V etc... are all fine.

440C is okay. Better than "premium" steels in some ways, so I consider it a "premium" steel in my mind. Simple carbon steels are fine too. They are cheap, but they perform well. 1095 can be impressive.

I can afford knives in high-end steel. So I will no longer buy knives in low-end steel. No 440A when I can afford a knife in 440C. And even 440C is close to being on the wrong side of the line.

It really just depends on the overall knife, though. I care more about the overall package. I am into high-end production knives and more affordable customs, not mass produced stuff in 440A. If a nice custom maker uses 1095 or 440C because that is their steel of choice, no arguements from me. But if a knife maker uses it because it is cheap to mass produce, that's another thing. I am into affordable high-end knives, not knives that make sacrifices to be affordable to the masses.

Price is always a factor since I only have so much money, but I tend to buy knives costing $200 to a grand. So they better have good materials.

Again, I may sound like a snob, but I have found that buying a smaller amount of more expensive knives is more fun than buying a larger amount of cheaper knives. I am a knife addict, so all of my extra money is going to go to knives. That is a given. So whether it is more expensive knives or less expensive knives, I spend the same amount. And since higher-end knives are more fun per dollar, they are actually a better bang for the buck.

I have nothing against cheaper knives in working steels like AUS-6 and 440A. I have owned them, and used them. They work fine. But I have more fun owning "higher-end" knives whether I need the improvements of just want them.
 
I bought a Leek with 440A and it's quite dull in comparison to the way BM delivers its knives by way of example. I know it's not the steel that determines sharpness, but I think makers are less likely to bother putting a razor sharp edge on a cheap(er) knife/steel combo. Steel type gets way more important as knife price escalates. I would never buy a 440A knife for $100 or more. Favorite steel? ATS-34/154CM for production knives or $500 customs. Well over $500... probably stainless damascus because at that price level I'm not too likely to EDC it.
 
In short: hardness below HRC 57 is a limit, exept it is a SAK.

The right steel grade for the task as hard as possible or in a good price relation.

In my eyes, a 420HC at 58HRC has more value than 154CM at the same point.
 
There are a wide variety of steels for a wide variety of uses. Some of the softer steels are tougher and that can be important at times. My high end steels are mostly bought as experiments or for special purposes. For example when I go on an elk hunt I want a knife that will stay sharp all the way through an elk, even if I have to bone the whole thing out for transport. For that I really like Bg42 or D2.

On the other hand I have a throwing knife in SK-5 and I'm considering buying a CRKT Russel Sting made from 1050 alloy. These are knives that you just will never break. I have reworked an Italian folding bayonet as a field knife and it truly was on the soft side, but it had the design feature that I wanted and really did the job. I never did get it back from my archaeologist girlfriend though.
 
Silly putty may dull quickly, but it is easy to bring back up to a hair-popping edge. It also resists rust very well, and doesn't chip while chopping brass rods.
 
When I came to these forums I was more knowledgable than the average Joe regarding steel and knives. I knew the basic differences between the most common stainless and carbon steels, kept mine and friends' knives nice and sharp, etc. Thought I was pretty smart!

Since then... none of my basic beliefs about the subject have changed, but...
I have come to know how much more there is to know. I'm really beginning to think that blade design, edge profile and especially HT are the most important factors in performance. It's certainly been proven that skilled hands can make a really, really good knife out of "low-end" steel, and a doofus like me could make a horrible knife out of premium steel :)
 
One thing I think that gets overlooked in respects to edge holding is how much blade grind and edge geometry affects this. Take a SAK and go cut up a bunch of cardboard. It will lose it's hair-popping edge in no time at all, but due to the design of the blade, even when it can't scrape off arm hair anymore it will still cut very well.
 
I primarily buy a knife based upon its overall design.
If it is comfortable and well designed, and has good materials overall, I'm not that concerned with the blade-steel.

Of course, if I can get a knife with great design AND with a premium blade-steel, then that's all the better!
 
My journey and education through different steels reminds me of the witticism: At 17, I thought my father didn't know squat. At 23, I was surprised at how much he learned.

Translation:
My search began for a better knife than my Buck crosslock with 420HC. Years later, I'm surprised how good 420HC is made these days.
 
smegs said:
My journey and education through different steels reminds me of the witticism: At 17, I thought my father didn't know squat. At 23, I was surprised at how much he learned.

Translation:
My search began for a better knife than my Buck crosslock with 420HC. Years later, I'm surprised how good 420HC is made these days.
Click to expand...

I believe that's a Mark Twain quote/paraphrase... I've used it often and my Dad thinks it's funny as hell :)
 
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